Letter 88

From: Isidore of Pelusium, monk To: Martinianus Date: ~410 AD Context: Isidore contrasts Epicurean philosophy with Christian teaching on judgment. Epicurus, the shepherd of your flock, impiously declared that everything came into being by chance and would return to nothing after death. But Christ, the maker and Father and God and Savior of all, promised to come in glory and to repay each person according to their deeds. If then Christ is more trustworthy than Epicurus — and it is for your stubborn heart to see this — take care that you are not caught off guard in your contempt, wishing to repent when there is no longer any place for repentance. Blessed, says the Scripture, is the one who has not defiled his tongue with shameful words, nor become a stumbling block to others through insults. A fall from the ground is easier to recover from than a fall of the tongue. Many who have fallen, Scripture says, have risen again — but those who have fallen through their words have perished beyond recovery.

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